CreatureData

White-fronted bee-eater

Merops bullockoides A. Smith, 1834

LCLeast Concernbirds

The white-fronted bee-eater (Merops bullockoides) is a species in the family Meropidae, order Coraciiformes. Recorded adults weigh 34.2 g to 35.8 g and live up to 7 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

White-fronted bee-eater (Merops bullockoides)
Photo: Bernard DUPONT from FRANCE · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the white-fronted bee-eater

Weight
34.2 g – 35.8 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
7 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Invertivoresrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
woodlandsrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
3 – 3.2src for Young per litter or clutch
Litters or clutches a year
1src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Sedentarysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the white-fronted bee-eater live?

Not recorded

What is the white-fronted bee-eater?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The white-fronted bee-eater (Merops bullockoides) is a species of bee-eater widely distributed in sub-equatorial Africa.

The species has a distinctive white forehead, a square tail, and a bright red patch on its throat. It nests in small colonies, digging holes in cliffs or earthen banks, and can usually be seen in low trees, waiting to hunt passing insects by making quick hawking flights or gliding down before hovering briefly to catch the prey.

From the Wikipedia article “White-fronted bee-eater” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=White-fronted_bee-eater&oldid=1339390694), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the white-fronted bee-eater endangered?

The white-fronted bee-eater is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the white-fronted bee-eater classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderCoraciiformes
  5. familyMeropidae
  6. genusMerops
  7. SpeciesMerops bullockoides A. Smith, 1834

Synonyms Melittophagus bullockoides, Merops bullockoides bullockoides, Merops bullockoides randorum

Other names and names in other languages (39)
  • WFBEEnglish
  • RooikeelbyvreterAfrikaans
  • وروار أبيض الجبهةArabic
  • Белочел пчелоядBulgarian
  • Gwespetaer bailhBreton
  • Abellerol frontblancCatalan
  • abellerol de front blancCatalan
  • vlha běločeláCzech
  • gwenynysor mygydogWelsh
  • Hvidpandet BiæderDanish
  • WeißstirnspintGerman
  • blankfrunta abelmanĝuloEsperanto
  • Abejaruco frentiblancoSpanish
  • valgelaup-mesilasenäppEstonian
  • زنبورخوار آفریقاییPersian
  • jokimehiläissyöjäFinnish
  • Guêpier à front blancFrench
  • bjeločela pčelaricaCroatian
  • fehérfejű gyurgyalagHungarian
  • Gruccione frontebiancaItalian
  • シロビタイハチクイJapanese
  • 흰목벌잡이새Korean
  • baltakaktis bitininkasLithuanian
  • WitkapbijeneterDutch
  • hvitpannebieterNorwegian
  • żołna białoczelnaPolish
  • چٹا موہرہ مکھی کھاناWestern Panjabi
  • Abelharuco-africanoPortuguese
  • abelharuco-de-testa-brancaPortuguese
  • Белолобая щуркаRussian
  • včelárik bieločelýSlovak
  • beločeli čebelarSlovenian
  • Beločela pčelaricaSerbian
  • vitpannad biätareSwedish
  • Ak Alınlı ArıkuşuTurkish
  • seselamarumoTswana
  • бджолоїдка білолобаUkrainian
  • 白額蜂虎Chinese
  • 白额蜂虎Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the white-fronted bee-eater

Other species in the same genus Merops.

CompareWhite-fronted bee-eater vs European bee-eaterWhite-fronted bee-eater vs Asian green bee-eaterWhite-fronted bee-eater vs Blue-cheeked bee-eaterWhite-fronted bee-eater vs Blue-tailed bee-eater

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the white-fronted bee-eater?

An adult white-fronted bee-eater weighs 34.2 g – 35.8 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the white-fronted bee-eater endangered?

The white-fronted bee-eater is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the white-fronted bee-eater live?

The white-fronted bee-eater has a recorded lifespan of 7 years.

What kind of animal is the white-fronted bee-eater?

The white-fronted bee-eater (Merops bullockoides) belongs to the family Meropidae in the order Coraciiformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). White-fronted bee-eater (Merops bullockoides). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/white-fronted-bee-eater

MLA

“White-fronted bee-eater (Merops bullockoides).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/white-fronted-bee-eater.

BibTeX
@misc{white_fronted_bee_eater_2026,
  title = {White-fronted bee-eater (Merops bullockoides)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/white-fronted-bee-eater},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}